System of electrical control.



V. A. FYNN. YSTEM OF ELECTRICAL CONTROL. APPLICATION FILED IEB.26, 1912,

1,1 18,929. I Patented Dec. 1,1914.

2 SHBETSSHEET 1.

11- H WI M H V. A. FYNN. SYSTEM OF ELECTRICAL CONTROL. APPLICATION FILED Palms, 1912.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

Patented Dec. 1, 1914.

UNITED srnrnsrarnnr oirmon.

VA E'BE ALFRED rrnn, or s'r. LOUIS, MISSOURI, ASSIGNOR TD WAGNER nLEcrRio MANUFACTURING COMPANY, OF ST.

MISSOURI.

LOUIS, MISSOURI, A CORPORATION OF SYS'1EM OF ELECTRICAL CONTROL.

Patented Dec. 1, 1914:.

Application filed February 26, 1912. Serial No. 679,876.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, Variant: ALFRED FYNN, a subject of the King of England, residing at St. Louis, Missouri, have invented a certain new and useful System of Electrical Control, of which the following is such a full, clear, and exact description as will enable any one skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specification.

My invention relates to electrically-actuated controlling mechanism and connections therefor, and is particularly applicable to electrically propelled vehicles, making it possible for the driver to control his vehicle easily and positively.

The principal objects of my invention are to deprive the operator of power to unduly increase the rate of acceleration of the driving motor or to suddenly reverse it; to connect the mechanical brake-applying mechanism to controlling switches in the manner and for the purposes hereinafter explained; and to produce a control system in which currents carried by the master controlling circuits may be small and of low voltage.

In the drawings, Figure 1 diagrammatically illustrates one embodiment of my' invention; Fig. 2 is similar to Fig. 1, but shows a different arrangement of connections between certain parts.

Referring to F in. 1, 50 is the driven shaft, supposed in this example, to be the shaft of an automobile. one wheel of whichis shown at 52. Mounted on this shaft 50, or geared to it in some convenient manner, is the main motor armature 51, operating in conjuction with the main field 53. The circuits of this main motor are adapted to be organized b a main controller in the usual manner for varying the speed and direction of motion. Mounted on the shaft 50 is a brake pulley 54 to which can be applied the brake shoe 71 carried by the arm 57 which is pivoted at 56. The brake shoe is normally held out of contact with the pulley 54 by means of spring 55, but can be forced into contact with said wheel by means of a pedal 59 on arm 58. This arm 58 is connected to the arm 57 and carries a segment gearing with the pinion 61 to which is attached a switch lever carrying two insulated contact blades 62, 63, adapted to engage with the segmental contacts 64 '65, 66,- 67 and 68,

' age battery 10. This same source of energy is made use of for actuating the auxiliary 0r pilot motor which actuates the main controller. This auxiliary motor is mounted on the shaft 4, its armature being indicated at 5 and its field winding at 6. This field winding is connected across the terminals 11, 12, of the battery 10 and can only be disconnected by the double pole switch 75, which the operator or driver would usually open on leaving the vehicle. The armature 5 of this pilot motor can either be connected between the points 11, 13, or 12, 13, of the storage battery, depending on whether the solenoid 34 or 35 is energized. Since it will ordinarily be convenient to use a high speed pilot motor, it will be necessary to introduce reduction gear of some kind between the shaft at of said motor and the shaft 2 on which the drum of the main controller is mounted. In the figures, this is indicated by the gear wheels, 9, 8 and 7, the first being mounted on the Shaftl, the second on the counter-shaft 3, and the third on the drumcontroller shaft 2. Mounted on this drumcontroller shaft, or conveniently geared thereto. is a locating switch 16 comprising two segments 17 and 18, insulated from the hub and also from each other, the latter insulation being provided by means of the insulators 19 and 20. A number of stationary contacts 21 to 27 inclusive, are disposed along the periphery of the locating switch 16 and adapted to make connection either with the half-ring 17 or 18. Two of these, the contacts 21 and 27, are respectively connected to the solenoids 34c and 35, the other ends of these solenoids being joined together and connected to the point 14: of'the storage battery 10. Contacts 22, 23, 24, 25 and 26 are in electrical connection with contacts 28, 29, 30, 31 and 32, respectively, forming part of the master controller, the movable lever of which is indicated at 33 and is connected to point .13 of the storage battery 10 by way of of the movable blade 62 and conductor 72, the arrangement being such that point 13 thestorage battery when the foot pedal 59 is not depressed. Provision is also made for connecting contact 24 of the locating switch, to point 13 or" the storage battery by means of the storage battery-can either bedirectly connected to the lever 33, or-directly to contact 24,-{21 simultaneous direct connection-of point 13 to lever 33 and to contact 24 being preferably. avoided.

The armature of the solenoid 34: carries the contact. plates &0 and 41. \Vhen 3a is not energized, this armature .rests on the support 42. Similarly, the armature of the solenoid 35 carries the contact plates 49 and a7, and rests 'on the support 48 when 35 is not energized. lVhen solenoid 34 is energized, then the conducting plate bridges the contacts 39 and, 36, while theconducting plate-4:1 bridges the contacts 37 and 38.

Similarly, the conducting plates 49 and 47 "are adapted to bridge the contacts 43, 15 and M, as respectively.

In describing the operation of the control system illustrated in the drawing,1 will assume that the pedal 59 has been released by the operator and allowed to travel through the angle a,the lever 58 then rests against the stop 73, being held in that position by the spring 55. -The brake pulley 54 willthiis be released; the main motor will be free .to

j rotate,and the switch blades 62 and 63 will nal 11.

stand in position 69, as indicated in dotted lines. If the lever 33 of the main controller stands on point 28, then as soonas the pedal has been released in the manner described, solenoid 3& will be energized, the circuit through it being closed as follows: from point 13 of the storage battery through one blade of switch 75, to the segment 6%, through blade 62 to segment 68 to lever 33, contact 28, contact 22, halt-ring 18, contact 21, solenoid 34-, and back to the storage battery at the point 14:. The energizing of solenoid 34 will cause contacts 39 and 36 to be bridged by the conducting plate 40, and contacts 3S and37 to b bridged by the contact plate 41, thus completing the ari-nature circuit ,of the pilot motor as follows: from point 13 of t-he'storage battery 10 to contact 39, to plate 40, contact 36, through the ar-- mature 5 to contact 37 plate: 41, contact 38, and back to the storage battery at the termi- The flow of current through the armature 5 from left to right will cause this armatureto revolve in, say, a counter-clock direction, also driving the shaft of the main drum controller and the locating switch 16 in a counter-clock direction. This movement will continue until the insulator 19 1 comes to stand under contact 22, at which instant the circuit of the solenoid 34: will be broken and its armature released, thus breaking the armature circuit of the pilot motor and bringing the latter to rest. Had I lever 33 been placed on point '29 instead of point 28, thenthe locating switch 16 could of shaft 2 in a counter-clock direction so moves the drum of the main controller as to organize'the circuits of the mainmotor in a mariner which will propel the latter in aforward direction. When insulator l9 standsunder point 23, the main drum controller is in a position which determinesa certain forward speed of the main motor which is less than the maxi-mum forwardspeed of that machine. -\Vhen 19 is under point 22, the main controller 15 establishes the circuit or circuits for the maximum forward speed of the main motor. hen 19' stands under contact 24:, the main controller 15 is in its 05 position. tation of 16 and of the main controller will place" the latter in a position in which the circuits of the mainmotor will be so organized as to cause the latter to rotate A clock-wise roin the opposite or backward direction. The

speed of this backward rotation is increased when the controller comes to occupy a position in which 19 stands under contact 26. It is clear that the number of contacts on the locating switch and ot'corresponding main drum positions can be selected at will, andthat some of the contacts of the locating switch can be made to correspond to main drum positions in which the circuits of the main motor are so organized as to cause that machine to act as an electro-dynamic brake. It will be seen that, with the pedal in its normal position, in which the brake is released, the operator or driver is able, by manipulating switch 33, to place the main drum controller in any desired position, thus causing the main motor either to stand still or to propel the vehicle in a torwardor backward direction. r

\Vhen the solenoid 31 is energized and shaft 2 is rotated in a counter-clock direction, then only about one-third of the total number of cells of the storage battery are in circuit with the pilot-motor armature, while acceleration of the main meterin a forward direction of rotation, and at another and higher speed in a clock-wise direction or when returning the main controller from the full on forward to the off position.

Assume that the pedal 59 is in its'normal position, that the switch blades 62 and 63 are consequently in the position 69, and that the switch 16 has responded .to the action of the driver, who placed switch on point 28 by turning in a counter-clock direction until the insulator 19 stands under point 22, and, let it be supposed that the driver desires to suddenlyarrest the progress of the vehicle. To do this, he must depress the pedal "nd bring the brake gear into the position She-H1 in the drawing. It is not necessary for him to move the lever 33 of the master controller, even if he also wishes the main controller to be returned to its ofl' position, for the application of the brake and the consequent movement of the blades 62- and 63 to the position 70 will not only stop the main motor mechanically by applying the brake shoe 71 to the brake wheel 5st and interrupt its electrical supply circuit at the points 66 and 67, but will also re-organize the connections controlling the solenoids 31 and as to return the main controller to its ofi position. This is brought about as follows: Actuation of the brake opens the circuit through the lever 33 by causing blade 62 to pass out of contact with 68, and places contact 24 of the locating switch in circuit with the battery through contact 65 and conductor 72. By

this connection the circuit through solenoid 35 is established from point 14 of the storage battery 10 through the solenoid 35 to contact 27, through the half-ring 17 to contact 2%, to contact 65, through the blade 62 to contact 64:, and back to the storage battery at the point 13. The solenoid 35 being energized,'the conducting plates 49 and 47 bridge the points 43, 45 and A, 16, respectively, closing the circuit of the pilot motor armature as follows: from the positive pole of the storage battery 10 through one blade of switch to point 46, through the conducting plate 17 to point 4-1, through the armature 5 to point 43, through the conducting plate 49 to point 45 and back to the stor age battery at point 13 through one blade of switch 75. The current flowing through the pilot armature from right to left will cause the latter to revolve in a clockwise direction,

also driving shaft 2 in a clockwise direction and gradually bringing the locating switch 16 from its position corresponding to that of lever 33 standing on point 28 to its off position, or to that which is shown in the drawing. At the moment the switch 16 reaches this off position the circuit through the solenoid 35 is interrupted because of the insulating block 19 breaking the circuit between the points 27 and 24 of the locating switch. The solenoid 35 being demagnetized, its armature will drop, thus interrupting the circuit of the pilot motor armature and, bringing the latter to rest. The drum of the main controller will be returned to its off position very quickly for the reason that the voltage impressed on the pilot armature when revolving in a' clockwise direction is about twice as great as the voltage impressed on said armature when revolving in a counter-clock direction. This difference in voltage is obtained by locating point 13 asymmetrically with respect to the two poles of the storage battery. Notwithstanding this quick return of the main drum-controller to its ofi position, it may happen that the driver will release the footbrake before said off position has been reached. Should he do so, then the connection between point 13 and contact 21 will be interrupted and the connection between point 13 and lever 33 will be reestablished with the result that the solenoid 35 will be immediately deenergized and solenoid 34' will immediately be excited. The current through the pilot armature will then be reversed and the locating switch 16 and the drum of the main controller will reverse the direction of their rotation and ,proceed counter-clockwise until the insulatingblock 19 has come to stand in its original position under contact 22. Releasing the foot-brake will also reestablish the circuit of the main motor, but the closing of this circuit will not cause the vehicle to jerk forward, for the reason that if the brake lever has been depressed for a period of time sutficient'to materially decrease the speed of the vehicle, then the locating switch 16 must have had ample time to either return to its oif position or to have come, very near to it, so that the circuit of the main motor will be reestablished at a time when the alteredposition of the drumof the main controller is such as to include aysuflicient amount, of starting resistance in the circuit of the niain motor. I

In the figures, the actual connections between the main controller 15, the starting resistances, the field winding, and the armature of the main motor, have not been shown, such connections being now perfectly well understood and forming no part of this invention. For the same reason no detail of the main controller construction has been shown. While the locating switch 16 is shown as mounted directly on the shaft of the main controller,'yet it is in most cases preferable to gear this switch to said shaft, for the reason that controllers as usually built are made to revolve through more than degrees. The switch 75 is intended to enable the driver to disconnect his battery from both motors before leaving his ve hicle, thus preventing the unauthorized handling of the latter. Point 14 can be selected ism in any desired manner with reference to point 13, but I prefer to so select its location as to reduce the voltage impressed on the solenoids 34 and 35 to the lowest possible value, thus minimizing the sparking at the contacts of. the resetting switch end of the master controller.

The circuit arrangement shown in Fig. 2 has for its object to make it impossible for both solenoids to be simultaneously energized. This 15 achieved by so arranging the circuit through each solenoid that it can only be closed when the armature of the other solenoid occupies its position of rest.

To this end the lead from solenoid 34 is not taken to point 14 of the battery directly,'but by way of the contacts 78, 79, which are so I placed as to be bridged by the contactplate motor, and means in circuit with the locating switch for operating said reversing switches;

5. A master controller, a governed memher, means for actuating the same, a source or energy; a locating switch hav1ng two contact members connected to the source oi energy, an lectromagnet in circuit with each of said contact members, reversing switches operated said magnets, and means independent of the master controller for establishing a circuit through the lo-' eating switch and through one or the other of said magnets, whereby the governed member will be caused to move toward its initial position. i

6. The combination with a vehicle, of a driving motor and a controller therefor, a

manner, all possibilities of short circuit, caused by the simultaneous operation of the l7 controlled by the'solenoid 35, only when said solenoid is not energized and'4r7 is therefore in its position of rest. In this two controlling solenoids are effectively avoided. The double pole switch 75 of Fig. 1 is replaced in Fig. 2 by the two single pole switches and 81.

I claim: 1. In a control system, a main motor, a

controller therefor, a master controller, a locating switch, means for actuating the main' controller. and locating switch, switches for determining the direction of movement of the main controller, and means in circuit with ,the locating switch for controlling said switches.

2. In a, control system, a master controller, a governed member, a locating switch, means for actuating the governed member and the locating switch, reversing switches incircuit with the actuating means, electro-magnets in circuit with the locating switch for operating the reversing switches,

and means independent of the master conv troller for establishing a circuit through one or the other of said electromagnets whereby the governed member will be caused to move toward its initial position.

3. In a controlsystem, a main motor and a controller therefor, a locating switch, an

auxiliary motor actuating the controller and the locating switch, said auxiliary 'motor and locating switch being in independent circuits, and means controlled by the circuits through the locatingv switch fore'stablishing circuitsthrough the auxiliary motor.

4:. In" a control system, a main motor, a controller therefor, a master controller, a locating switch,-an auxiliary motor for actuating themain controller and locating switch, reversing switches for the auxiliary copies of thiapatent may be obtained. for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents.

controller. means for actuating the 10- U eating switch and the controller, two arev'ers'mg switches for controlling the ing means and means in circuit with the lo-- eating switch and with a contact of one 0t the reversing switches 'for' actuating the other reversing switch.

8. In a control system, a governed member, means'for a'ctuating the same, reversing switches for the actuating n1eans,-a source of energy, a locating switchhaving two con tact. members each connected to the source of energy, a separate electro-magnet for operating each reversing switch, each electromagnet being in circuit with a contact memher of the locating switch and with a contact of a reversing switch.

9. In a control system, a governed member, means for actuating the same, a source of energy, a locating switch having two contact members each connected to the source of energy, a separate electro-magn'et in circuit with each of said contact members, each electro magnet being provided. with.

means for rendering the other inoperative.

In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand and aliixed my seal inthe presence of the two subscribing witnesses.

rattan ALFRED FYNlI.

Witnesses N W. A. Annxaxnnn,

GEURGINE Snonn.

Washington, D. (3. v

actuatv 

